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Disappointment at labelling decision

The nation's food ministers have failed to make the big decisions to address Australia's obesity problem and the health and social costs of alcohol, health groups say.

State and territory food ministers have signed off on the introduction of mandatory pregnancy warning labels on alcohol but followed the federal government's lead in rejecting the "traffic light" system of food labelling.

Former federal health minister Neal Blewett's review of food labelling had recommended that a traffic light system be introduced to help consumers make healthier food choices.

The traffic light system of colour coding would tell a consumer, at a glance, if the food had high, medium or low amounts of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt.

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Instead, ministers have agreed that public health, consumer and industry groups be consulted in the development of an alternative front-of-pack labelling system, which is to be considered in June and hoped to be in place by the end of next year.

They also want to give industry two years before making pregnancy warning labels on alcohol mandatory.

The Public Health Association of Australia accused the food ministers of refusing to put the health of the community ahead of the interests of big business.

"The acceptance of industry self-regulation is effectively a sop to a softened approach when there are issues that need to be tackled vigorously," CEO Michael Moore said in a statement.

"In agreeing to have `a collaborative process with key industry, public health and consumer stakeholders to develop an agreed system within a year', the ministers have put a nail in the coffin of the simple, most effective way for people to understand the quality of their manufactured food."

Australian Medical Association president Steve Hambleton said the federal government had caved in to industry pressure to put self-regulation ahead of legislated action to protect people's health, and the forum had followed its lead.

"The fox has been left guarding the henhouse," Dr Hambleton said in a statement.

"The forum has failed to make the big decisions to combat obesity and poor food choices in this country."

Health agencies the Alcohol Policy Coalition and the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) said the introduction of "appropriate labelling" about the risks of drinking alcohol during pregnancy, with regulation in two years' time, was a welcome first step.

But the coalition said the decision to implement just one of the Blewett report's alcohol-related recommendations was a lost opportunity to address the significant health and social cost of alcohol.

FARE's CEO Michael Thorn said the group hoped to see further action taken by government to develop warning labels outlining the many other harms that came from excessive alcohol consumption.